Sure, the thought of selling has probably crossed several of ours minds. From time to time.

It's popped into my head a few times, but I always wrote it off. I'd say, "Maybe it's just a life long project" ect. While I DO want it, I haven't worked on it in any capacity for what I think is coming up to three years. I move a lot and have been trying to travel as much as possible lately which leaves me no place/capacity to work on it. I don't see that aspect of my life changing anytime soon.

Three years could turn into five years, ect. Meanwhile everything just sits. Most of it in storage I pay for monthly. Which leads me to my other issue with the project, it's costing me money just to sit around. Which many of my close friends enjoy pointing out to me. When we are talking over the course of several years it starts to add up. If I had safe, indoor and free storage for an indefinite period of time (wouldn't that be great?) I'd be much more content to let it slumber until I have the money/time/space to begin properly reassembling it-which will be years worth of time. Once I begin working on it again I would like to finish it there.

Also- I don't have to sell it, but I'm running through the what-if game.

Has anyone been in a similar situation, as I'm sure some of you have, what did you do? How have you felt after?

My project stayed dormant for almost 3 years before I had time and money to work on it. Now I've got a second kid on the way so more than likely I'll finish the body then money and time will run out and I'll have to wait to finish the engine. (I really hope I get it done before then but who knows)

I also work with a lot of car guys in their 40's and 50's. So many of the guys are talk to are now spending 30,000 buying back "that" car. The car they had in their early twenties they sold for what ever reason and they just need to get it back. That is what keeps me going on mine.

If its car you want over the long term keep it. If its a car you just like then maybe it is time to sell then when you have the time and money you buy the right car.

This thought runs through my mind on a weekly basis, although I dd the car and love it. I don't have time or money to fix everything that needs to be done. I don't see me ever letting go of it though, it holds a place near and dear to my heart. I would say keep it, if you could find a place to keep it, like a shed or something at a family members house or something, put it on jack stands and let it sit or see if someone you trust can finish it for you.

You can buy used shipping containers in a variety of sizes for fairly cheap, and then resell it when you're able to start on the car. That might be quicker/easier than using pallets, and is less prone to damage/aging/fire.

I've looked at storage containers but they usually run 2k for a non rusty one, which is equal to about two year's of storage. Also, getting that into place would be a small nitemare. I appreciate the ideas though.

Pallet sheds can be no joke though:

I would build a proper floor too. Since pallets are free the project is super cheap.

Last edited by WarTowels on Wed Sep 10, 2014 5:13 pm, edited 1 time in total.

You have a very near complete car as it is. If sold currently you would be best parting the bits of it out and selling the shell which would yield you a far less total than what it should be worth.

You could always decrease your expectations. Example: do not remove undercoating. Leave stock suspension for now. Basically just do the stuff you have to so that it runs and you can enjoy it every so often. Not everything has to be done at once. I had to do this. Others may have better restorations. They may have more toys in their cars... BUT you will have an alltrac for which you can still enjoy. You already know you will regret selling/parting it if you did.

Side note. Im not far from you so if you do get around to putting it back together and need help here and there I can schedule some time.

Wait if you parted I would so buy some of those parts...... On second though part it!!! I kid I kid

~James

"The more you let life's obstacles slow you down the longer it will take to defeat them."~Yours truly

Now as to the dilemma you are facing. We (most of us) start the obsession with cars at a very young age. We learn to make car sounds, we "drift" our toys, we build jumps without ever having learned how to build a jump. It's a fascination that kind of grows with us. I don't know how old most of the guys here are but I assume we range from 15-50 or more. Im 29. How many of you had a bike when you were young and would skid to a stop like the iron kids bread commercial. We took our bikes off curbs and dirt piles to get that rush. We get older and we get cars, usually a shitty one at first (mine was a 77 VW westfalia). For whatever reason the fascination sticks with us and we customize and modify whatever car we have and we eventually develop a "dream car". This car isn't always a specific make or model necessarily but often it's a type of car. I feel like most of us here want that whistling turbo, the pull of boost, and the grip of all wheel drive that we always built in video games. I personally have found that in my alltrac. I'm a toyota guy for life and the alltrac just fits all the things I want from a car.

I bought my car without having ever seen it in person. I trusted the buyer based on pictures and videos and had a friend pick it up and ship it to me. I spent my entire budget getting the car I considered to be my "dream car" and when I got it, it was a not nearly what I was expecting. The interior was beautiful but it had (has) shitty paint and leaked fluids from every possible place it could, even from some I didn't know possible. My son was born 2 months earlier and my whole world was upside down from lack of time, money, and space. I asked myself exactly what you are asking yourself now. Is the car worth the struggles I will face and the money it will cost just to be able to keep it based on a "dream car" ideal?

Cut away to my Pops for a minute. He had a car he loved. An old capri when he was about 17. He did everything he could to the car including the super rare wide body kit from the era. He autocrossed, street raced, and took the thing on road trips that helped shape who he is today. The car was long gone before I came around and he never had any photos of it. He told me all the stories of all the adventures he had in this little capri. So many times that I could tell them to you now and you would think they were my stories. One day my mom hands me this picture of my dad the day he left for college in his capri. Before any mods, before the black paint, before anything. I took this picture to him a few days later and when I handed it to him he got a tear in his eye and he said, "I wish I could've had that car forever." I'll never forget his face as he looked at the picture. We spent the evening reminiscing while he told me all of the same stories I had heard a thousand times before but this time he told them with more of a spark in his voice. I know he would give anything to have that car back today.

Back to my car. That night hangin with my dad made me realize something. If you really love your car, if it is that car that you know you want to drive when you are old, and you know it will make you feel the way it did the first time you drove it, then this is your "forever car." My alltrac is my forever car. Now it is a couple years later and I have spent all the money I could fixing up my car. I've spent hours and hours, and sold so so many prized possessions to get the car where it is today. It's nowhere near "done" and I would gladly do it all over again. It doesn't matter how much it costs me or how much time I have to dedicate, I will keep the car and continue working on it until one of us dies. Even if it sits for the next 20 years with a monthly storage bill, if I can afford, I will keep it.

Now to you and your car. You already know if it is your forever car. Deep down inside you already know if you want to sell it or not. Don't let other people's criticism or comments help you make your choice. I am constantly patronized for driving a (insert ungodly dollar amount here) 80s car with a heater that doesn't work and the most temperamental starter you've ever seen. But I don't care. It's my forever car. Don't be afraid of your choice, whether it's to sell it or to keep it.

(this is definitely the longest post I have ever written on a forum. I think I wake and baked a bit harder than I thought lol )

^^^^very well said!!!!! I had goosebumps reading.. Lols.. All n all.. Keep the car, u kno ur gonna regret it later! Ex: my brother sold his 1995 toyota supra se NA hardtop to buy his Lexus is300. He looks back every time and regrets it. The new owner now has transformed my brothers former car into a beauty now and I can see the regrets in him.

I say to just think about it for a seriously long time. If your hand is not being forced for example: you need money to keep a roof over your head or the like sell it for the greater good. If not take your time and come to a reasonable decision that works for you. My Alltrac has been under construction for what seems like forever and probably has been. In that time I have purchased thousands of dollars worth of parts a little at a time. I don't make a huge salary and it takes time to get the big ticket items, but once I do make the big purchases I feel like I accomplished something . Even though my wife gives me a hard time about the pile-o-parts that are now taking up the 3rd bedroom's closet . The thing is if I had to sell my car or parts I would without hesitation. Sure I would regret it, but it wouldn't be the 1st or last thing in life that I regret, at the end of the day it's just a car and there are more important things going on